Pages

Tuesday, 9 December 2014

Christmas Book Guide!

Ah, Christmas
time! The streets are packed with people, there’s a bite of frost in the air,
everything smells a bit like cinnamon and if you’re lucky, there might just be some
lovely book-shaped parcels under the tree. Christmas is a brilliant time for
book-lovers everywhere! The bookshops are stocked with all sorts of wonderful
Christmas releases and if you have a family that listens quite closely you can
replenish your entire to-be-read pile with the fantastic new titles you’ve been
lusting over for ages!

However, if you happen to buying for
a book-lover and they are not entirely explicit about exactly which book it is
they would like to receive from Santa, then having a successful Book-Christmas
can be a tad tricky! But don’t you worry; I am here to help you through this
difficult time of year! This is a book-lovers guide to Christmas!

1.I
am going to get this out of the way first because I love you all and I don’t
want you to waste your money. If you don’t know almost exactly what titles a
person may want, don’t guess.
Seriously, either just ask them what they want or avoid the bookshop entirely,
it isn’t worth it. If your loved one is quite an intense book-lover then chances
are that they will have read quite a lot of what Waterstones, Barnes & Noble and WH Smith have
to offer. Unless you happen to be a crazy stalker or know their exact reading tastes
and experiences inside-out then I really wouldn’t bother. Play it safe and
don’t be tempted by that gorgeous new John Green box set, if you don't know for sure, it’s much too dangerous!

2.Okay,
so you’ve read tip number one and you’re thinking, but if I can’t get a
book-lover books, what the hell do I buy?! No fear, my dears! This is where
your trusty friend, the book token, swoops in to save the day. It may seem
impersonal and a bit weak but trust me, stick even just a £10 book token inside
a card and you will be able to watch the sheer delight on your loved one’s face
as it falls out onto their lap! Physically, a book token is just a small
rectangle of plastic, but emotionally it is so much more. Book tokens are
exciting, they hold all sorts of possibilities, and they give book-lovers an
excuse to go for another thrilling adventure through the shelves at the local
bookshop!

3.Now
obviously, we don’t all have obese wallets of cash to spend on festivities but
buying books really doesn’t have to be expensive. It is so easy to get cheap
books if you buy second hand. You’d be surprised the amount of good-quality,
well-known books hidden inside your local charity shop. I’m lucky enough to
have two different Barnardos bookshops near me and an Oxfam one as well, but if
you don’t have access to these shops specifically, any old charity shop will
do! I once found the entire Hunger Games series in almost brand-new condition
for only about £3.50 in a random Hospice Care on holiday. I really don’t think
your loved one will care if the books are second-hand or brand new, if it’s a
good story they’ll thank you profusely and stick their teeth in right away. After
all, it is the thought that counts!

4.But
when shopping for Book-Christmas you are not solely limited to the bookshops
only. Book-related merchandise is a fantastic gift for any passionate fan girl
or boy! If your friend happens to be a massive potterhead then the
possibilities are endless! Replica Marauders Map? I do think so. Bertie Bott’s
Every Flavour Beans? Yes please! Magical heat transforming ‘Mischief Managed’
mug? Well, I don’t mind if I do! Simply
search your loved-one’s favourite book or series along with the word ‘merch’
into your favourite search engine and I guarantee you’ll get hundreds of gift
ideas in mere seconds! Personally, when I want to find cool and interesting
merchandise I hop on over to Etsy.co.uk, there’s thousands of people on there,
hand-crafting and creating merch every single day! Just a few quick clicks and
Christmas is sorted.

5.If
you really are strapped for cash, but you still want a love-filled, heart-felt
gift to give for book-Christmas, well, why not get a little arty? Sure, it
takes a bit more time and effort, but, even if it doesn’t turn out quite the
way you want it to, the finished product can still be something quite awesome
and special. It doesn’t have to be all that complex – if you have art skills
and some coloured card you can make cool book themed cards like this one – and
if you can’t think of any ideas there’s tons of guides and templates on the
internet. It’ll cost you one day, some knitting needles and a couple balls of
wool to make a long cosy Gryffindor scarf, or if you want to get really fancy
you could even have a go at crocheting yourself a woolly Potter dolly! Just, have a go. It’s fun and a great way to
get the expensive book merchandise you really want.

6.Lastly,
don’t be afraid to write inside the books. I know some people might crucify me
for saying this, but there’s something so fantastically gorgeous about opening
up a book someone has given you, ready to start reading, and finding that
they’ve left you a little message. It’s so sweet and cute and very personal! It
adds a lovely little touch to an otherwise fairly usual present. If you want to
leave a message but are a bit scared to commit so fully to leaving a permanent
mark on the gift, just write it lightly in pencil, then it can be rubbed out at
the reader’ own discretion. It’s counter-intuitive but it is an undeniably
romantic, I’ve wanted someone to do this for me ever since I first read ‘The
Fault In Our Stars’. So go on, be a bit cheeky!

So there we have it! Six great tips on how to have an absolutely
blurbtastic Book-Christmas!

8 comments:

Ahhh, Evie! What an awesome post and great ideas! Can I just have these gorgeous Harry Potter dolls? They're absolutely amazing! And what you wrote about personalizing a book with a cute little message ... I've never thought about it that way! Now I want someone to buy me a book and leave a sweet message in it, damnit!

I think bookmarks are also a great gift idea! Some are really pretty and especially if they're self-made they make a really lovely gift. :D

I know! Some people are so so so talented it's crazy :O I can just about doodle a few wizards but theres no way I can ever take a need and a bit of wool and MAKE one! Must be magic. Must be :D Bookmarks can be so so so nice :3 My friend got me some recently and you have to write on them and record words you don't know and cute stuff like that :D Home made ones would be adorable :3Thankyou so much for commenting Yvonne :D Makes my day reading these

I love Christmastime for this exact reason! It's my birthday and Christmas all wrapped in one, so I get TONS of books. Luckily, my friends are all book nerds, too, so I pretty much get ONLY books for the holidays. Plus a doll to add to my collection. But it's mostly books, and since my friends and I have the same preferences, it's usually pretty easy to pick out gifts. If they don't tell me exactly what they want, I can usually pick a book that I've really enjoyed and, chances are, they'll like it, too. I guess I'm lucky that way.

Thanks for the lovely comments you left on my blog! It really made my day. =) I followed back via Bloglovin!

Oooo lucky having all book nerd friends :O My friends are pretty great for that but its mostly me forcing books upon them than the other way around.. I consider it enlightening them in the delight of teen fiction :D Give me a weird sense of achievement when they come back and tell me that the book I lent them was AMAZING :3 Your welcome for the comments. I meant everything said :D And thanks for dropping by here as well :D I'll be a regular for your blog now Merry Christmas!

I love this post, and I wholeheartedly agree with many of the points, especially number one. I'd give that advice for gift-giving in general - unless you know someone REALLY well, ask them what they want! It makes life easier on everyone involved, and if the person gives you a few options, it can still be a surprise. And I won't crucify you for #6 - I agree with that one as well. A personalized message sounds so nice, as long as it's in light pencil just in case. :)

I dont think I could ever rub out a message someone left me in a book.. I think if someone did that for me and they weren't a relative I would just have to marry them on the spot it's so cute :3 I like to put a little spontaneity in my gifts but sometimes it can be so DIFFICULT that I just have to ask :( Mind you, it is lovely getting something you reeeeally wanted for Christmas, even if you did have to beg for it!

Bloglovin

What am I reading?

Google+ Badge

About Me

Hello! My name is Evie! I'm the author of Prescription Fiction I am a British teenager with a passion for reading. I love to talk about books, so I guess this is my way of doing jut that! Please feel free to leave any comments on my posts, and I'm always open to new reading suggestions!
Follow me on twitter: @PrescripFic
Like me on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/prescriptionfiction
Fire away!